Electrical circuitry often must be protected from disruptions caused by electromagnetic interference (EMI) entering the system.
Frequently today's electronic circuitry requires the use of high density, multiple contact electrical connectors. There are many applications in which it is desirable to provide a connector with a filtering capability, for example, to suppress EMI. To retain the convenience and flexibility of the connector, however, it is desirable that the filtering capability be incorporated into connectors in a manner that will permit full interchangability between the filtered connectors and their unfiltered counterparts. In particular, any filtered connector should also in many instances retain substantially the same dimensions as the unfiltered version and should have the same contact arrangement so that either can be connected to an appropriate mating connector.
One method of achieving filtering capability is to incorporate a circuit board having a plurality of electrical components mounted thereto. The components include multilayer ceramic capacitors or transient suppression diodes or the like, typically of the type having a pair of spaced external electrodes, which are soldered or adhered with conductive adhesives to circuit paths on the board. Accordingly, the solder or otherwise adhered interconnections are subject to stresses caused by movement of the board whether from thermal expansion or contraction or when used in an environment subject to constant vibration. U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,752 discloses a board having transient suppression diodes thereon. Other patents having components mounted on boards include U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,992,061 and 4,600,256. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,151,054 and 5,152,699 disclose the use of ground springs for holding chip capacitors in electrical engagement with terminals in connectors.